5 Ways (Genius) Recipes Can Change the Way You Cook (2024)

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by: Kristen Miglore

March31,2015

14Comments

14Comments

Today: What makes a recipe genius? The answer is simple.

The question I find myself answering most often (other than "What's the 52 in Food52?" Hint: It's because of the calendar, not the number of cards in a deck.) is "What makes a recipe genius?"

I've been writing the column Genius Recipesfor close to fouryears, and the Genius Recipes cookbookis coming out in eightdays (!!!), so by now I have my answer down. It's simple: A recipe is genius if it will change the way you cook. But that tends to manifest itself in a handful of different ways.

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Below, I've explained the five most common ways a recipe can be genius, and partly for a selfish reason. Genius Recipes is powered by this community and our collective cooking knowledge, curiosity, and intuition. Most of the recipes I feature—and the most unexpectedly brilliant ones—come from tips from you. So I'm reminding you all of your mission: If you see a recipe that fits one or more of the following criteria, send it my way. Pretty soon I can start forwarding my emails about that pesky 52 to you too.

1. It simplifies a technique.

Everyone always said you had to do it one way. Boom—you don't! Gumbowhere you don't have to stir the roux for an hour. Potato gratinthat you don't have to layer. Tomato sauceyou don't need to chop a thing for.

2. It solves a problem.

What to do with already seasoned mashed potatoes? The fading herbs left from other recipes? Rock hard peaches? How do you make a salad a day ahead? We've got solutions!

3. It uses an unexpected ingredient.

A salad whose secret ingredient is ice cubes. Fudge made of tofu. Salad dressingmade with the dregs of the bottle of red wine. A cake made of parsley. They made thesewaffles made with cornstarchor fish dusted with Wondrasound pretty tame.

4. It uses the best technique after testing a whole lot of alternatives.

Sometimes I go on the hunt for the best roast chicken(or ratatouille, or pizza, or banana bread), and test every promising recipe I can find. Dara Moskowitz Grumdahlof the radio show Off the Menutold me she thought the book would save her from "decision fatigue," which is exactly what I wanted to do. I am more than happy to suffer the decisions and the just-good or great versions till I find something genius.

5. It sounds just a little insane.

Whipped cream on asparagus. Meatballs made with 2 cups of water. Broccoli—cooked—forever. A hunk of beef tenderloin, wrapped in a dishcloth, thrown in the coals. If it sounds crazy, it might be just crazy enough to work.

Photos by James Ransom

From our new podcast network, The Genius Recipe Tapes is lifelong Genius hunter Kristen Miglore’s 10-year-strong column in audio form, featuring all the uncut gems from the weekly column and video series. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts so you don’t miss out.

Tags:

  • What to Cook
  • Genius Recipes
  • Lists
  • Genius

See what other Food52 readers are saying.

  • Ron Svetgoff

  • Debbi

  • Traci Benish

  • Lia Saunders

  • amazinc

Written by: Kristen Miglore

I'm an ex-economist, lifelong-Californian who moved to New York to work in food media in 2007, before returning to the land of Dutch Crunch bread and tri-tip barbecues in 2020. Dodgy career choices aside, I can't help but apply the rational tendencies of my former life to things like: recipe tweaking, digging up obscure facts about pizza, and deciding how many pastries to put in my purse for "later."

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14 Comments

Ron S. August 18, 2015

kinda of a stupid wasteful article. Oh, I'm adding toffee brittle to my scrambled eggs and oh I always mix my baked beans with bananas. Does this nonsense ever end just to fill a food article???

JP October 23, 2015

That's kinda silly and wasteful comment, Ron

Debbi July 24, 2015

I thought I was done with cookbooks as most often I look something up on line. But you've got me! I need to hold this one in my hands! I love to cook and am curious about your genius recipies! Debbi

Kristen M. October 16, 2016

Very, very belatedly, thank you Debbi! I have to say, I love being able to pull it off the shelf, even if I know some of the recipes are online.

Traci B. May 23, 2015

Congrats on the cookbook. One of my favorite genius recipes is celery soup.

Lia S. April 8, 2015

Congrats Kristen from Oz. Please tell me we are going to be able to get a hold of a copy of this fantastic book down under??

Kristen M. October 16, 2016

I'm so very behind on responding to this, Lia, but I hope you were able to find a copy down under. I do believe they're available, and even saw someone from Oz doing a cooking challenge from the book on Instagram!

amazinc April 7, 2015

Congratulations! I've been waiting with longing for my issue (purchased at least
4-5 months ago). Will enjoy it, I know. And, btw I can't remember if I ordered one or two copies. What can I say??? I'm OLD!, but still cooking every day

Kristen M. October 16, 2016

I'm way—wayyy—behind on responding, but thank you so much, amazinc. And dang, good for you for cooking every day!

Pia M. April 1, 2015

Congratulations!!!

MrsWheelbarrow April 1, 2015

Kristen - Enjoy your launch day. It only comes once. Revel in it. What a glorious accomplishment. I can't wait to hold this book in my hands. xoMrsW

jenniebgood April 1, 2015

Really looking forward to the cookbook, Kristen - Congrats!

amyeik April 1, 2015

Kristen- This column has both cheered me on and cheered me up. Your writing is so twistedly right that everything feels ok. I want to try those crazy combinations and I applaud your energy for doing the research - and everyone else who has contributed the ideas. Thank you all!

Kristen M. October 16, 2016

How on earth did I miss responding to these? Thank you both for your support (and I'm sorry for taking so long to do it) <3

5 Ways (Genius) Recipes Can Change the Way You Cook (2024)

FAQs

Why recipe is important in learning how do you cook? ›

Recipes serve as valuable guides and teaching tools for novice cooks. They provide an organized, step-by-step approach to cooking and help individuals learn cooking techniques, terminology, and basic kitchen skills. As people gain experience, they can gradually modify recipes and create their own.

What are benefits of cooking? ›

By cooking for yourself, you can ensure that you and your family eat fresh, wholesome meals. This can help you to look and feel healthier, boost your energy, stabilize your weight and mood, and improve your sleep and resilience to stress.

What does sauce go on? ›

Sauces Add Flavor to Our Favorite Meals. Take for example, spaghetti, burgers, and salads. Spaghetti would just be a boring, bland mess of noodles without a zesty marinara sauce coating every strand.

Do recipes make a better cook? ›

Good cooks rely on recipes—to a point. In a professional kitchen, recipes are essential to creating consistent food, so that everyone takes the same path to the same place. But cooks who rely only on strictly codified formulas miss out on what is really important.

What are the factors affecting the cooking skills of students? ›

Through a literature review, it was found that mothers and cooking classes are the most important sources to acquire cooking skills, while factors such as gender, age, income, social/educational class, attitude and social environment determine how one acquires their cooking competence.

What are the three importance of cooking food? ›

We should prefer eating cooked food because cooking destroys harmful germs in the food. Cooked food can be easily digested and absorbed by the digestive system in the body. Cooked food is comparatively tastier than raw food.

What values are learned in cooking? ›

Cooking involves important life skills, particularly patience, problem-solving, and creativity. As children wait for pasta to boil or for their chicken to cook, they will learn that they need to be patient to achieve the results that they want.

What are 5 benefits of cooking at home? ›

Major Benefits of Cooking at Home
  • Saving Money. Eating on the go may seem convenient, but it's pricey. ...
  • Eating Healthier. Everyone should know the importance of a well-rounded diet. ...
  • Stimulating Your Creativity. ...
  • Spending Time With Family. ...
  • Knowing Every Ingredient. ...
  • Controlling Your Portions. ...
  • Making Extras for the Freezer.
Oct 23, 2023

Do you eat or drink a sauce? ›

In cooking, a sauce is a liquid, cream, or semi-solid food, served on or used in preparing other foods. Most sauces are not normally consumed by themselves; they add flavor, moisture, and visual appeal to a dish.

What is the hardest sauce to make why? ›

The hardest sauce to master, espagnole, is also called basic brown or Spanish sauce. It is made through the creation of a very dark brown roux, to which veal stock or water is added, along with browned bones, pieces of beef, vegetables, brown sugar and various seasonings.

What are the 4 main sauces? ›

The five mother sauces are hollandaise, tomato (sauce tomat), bechamel, Espagnole, and veloute. French chef Auguste Escoffier identified the five mother sauces, forever associating them with French cuisine. However, mother sauces are relevant in all modern cooking practices.

Why is it important to learn how do you read a recipe? ›

Knowing how to read a recipe is a big step in making you a better cook. It saves time, helps avoid confusion, and boosts confidence in the kitchen. Try these tips and you won't get stuck or surprised halfway through making your meal.

What is the concept of recipe important? ›

Recipes are important because they contain the information necessary to make a dish properly. As with any set of instructions, you rely on them to give you all of the information you need. There isn't always someone nearby who has that knowledge. Recipes also ensure standardization.

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